Gas mask



Dec. 212 1943' s, DALY;

GAS MASK Filed May 21' 1941 ADSORPTIVE 1 MATERIAL C0000 O0. l o o o o o n CHLOROPHYLL ETC lNvlaNTOR ATTORNEYS Patented Dec. 21, l

2,337,232- GAS MASK sylvester Daly, wooacuff Lake, N, J. Application May 21, 1941, Serial No. 394,458

This invention relates to gas masks.

The gas mask commonly used in military service consists essentially of a facepiece of rubber or rubberized fabric which nts tightly across the forehead, along the cheeks and under the chin and such' facepiece is connected by a short piece of flexible and non-collapsible tube to a sheet metal canister containing adsorbent materials. The facepiece is fitted with Windows of nonsplintering glass placed in front of the eyes and the canister is worn suspended from the shoulders or strapped across the chest. The bottom of the canister is provided with a light disk check valve which opens only to admit air and a second check valve opens from the facepiece to the outside air. Thus, the air breathed in by the wearerf of the mask must pass through the canister and the air exhaled by the wearer is discharged through the facepiece.

The principle upon which the gas' mask functions is the purification of` inspired air by removal of4 poisonous and toxic gases, vapors and irritant smoke. Perfect t of thefacepiece is I depended upon to insure that only air which passes through the canister is drawn into the lungs. The canister is an oblong shaped metal box containing a combination gas and smoke filter. 'I'he iilter consistsfof ,an oval-shaped perforated sheet metal chemical container lled with a mixture of 80%- activated charcoal and 20% interior of the chemical container into contact y with the chemicals therein and theA toxic vapors are absorbed by the charcoal or neutralized by the soda lime. The puried air passes out of the canister through the tube previously referred to. Toxic gases encountered in civilian occupations are mainly the following organic vapors such as laniline, gasoline, benzene, ether, toluene-acids 5 claims. (o1. 252-2633) The ygas mask above described does not afford protection against gases such as ammonia, hydrochloric or hydrocyanic acid fumes and is useless for such gases as carbon monoxide. It is,

however, useful in connection with the other gases.

tional gas, but also against such additional gases as ammonia, hydrochloric and hydrocyanic acid fumes and carbon monoxide.

Iu'accordance with the present invention'there are employed the plant respiratory pigment chloing bound to the protein globin.

such as hydrochloric, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen peroxide and chlorine-ammonia gas-and carbon monoxide. The principal war gases are as follows: brombenzyl cyanide (CHsCHBrCN), chlorpicrin (CClsNOa) cyan'ogen chloride (CNCl) mustard gas (dichlorethyl -suliide (CzHiCDnS), chlorine C12. phosgene (COCla) acid (HCN), lewisite (chlorvinyldichlorarsine CHCICHASCh) diphenylchlorarsine (CeHs)aAsC1.

' hydrocyanic rophylls, various porphyrins, the sulpho-derivativ'es of the porphyrins,- metallic complexes of all these foregoing compounds andlin addition all those compounds having either aphorbin or chlorin nucleus (including the purpurins) and nally includes those chemically related compounds the phthalocyanins, the imido-porphyrins, and the aza-porphins. As is nowv Well-known, chlorophyll, the green respiratory pigment of plants, and hemoglobin the red blood cell pigment of animals are chemically related. Each has four pyrrole rings, though bound 'in a different way, the ring system of chlorophyll being bound to the alcohol phytol and the ring system of hemin be- Each has also a concentrically bound metal' in the center of the molecule,4 iron in the case of hemoglobin and magnesium in the case of chlorophyll. case of plants, chlorophyll absorbs energy from the sun and in some unknown way uses it for the manufacture of sugar and starch from carbon dioxide and water. In the case oi hemoglobin, the hemin of the hemoglobin in` the circulating blood unites (in the lungs) with the oxygen of the inspired air, thus maintaining life through respiration. Because the chlorophyll pigments `are thus utilized in nature as agents of gaseous interchange and union, they are of prime importance as absorbent and combining substances in a gask mask canister and have equal ainlty and attraction for gases as would the blood itself.

Chlorophyllin-a may be prepared following,

:rophyllv molecule, while the third one is formed derivatives of chlorophyll (both Water soluble and water insoluble), namely, the chlorophyllins,'the chlorophyllin salts, the

In they peratures, (usually in a pressure autoclave) by the splitting of the isocyclic ring. To make chlorophyllin water soluble the tri-sodium may be prepared.

Chlorin-e is prepared by splitting oir the magnesium 'atom from chlorophyllin by acid treatment. However, it is more convenient to prepare it from pheophytin-a, a compound which correspends to chlorophyll, but is magnesium free.

Alkaline cleavage of pheophytin-a, following Willstaetters process yields chlorin-e in the same way as chlorophyll, with alkaline treatment yields chlorophyllin. Here again, the trisodium salt of direct communication with the tube II.

the single ligure being a sectional view. of the canister.v The canister consists essentially of a sheet metall casing III having a tube II leading from the top thereof and-having an inlet .check valve I2 in its bottom. Within `the canister is supported a perforate metal tube I3 which is in A perforate annular metal container I4 surrounds the tube I3 and is itself enclosed by a covering I5 of ltering material such, for example, as thick paper or felt.

chlorin-e is prepared to make the compound water-soluble.

acid treatment chlorophyll-a pheophytn-a 'The metal complex of chlorin-e, copper chlorin-e is made and rendered water soluble in the same Way as the metal-free chlorin-e. The copper atom is bound in the center of the molecule as magnesium is found in chlorophyllin.

Pyroporphyrin (typical of the chlorophyll porphyrins) is a chlorophyll porphyrin prepared by alkaline cleavage of pheophytin at higher tem- It is a mono-carboxylic acid retaining the original propionic acid group of the chlorophyll molecule; it has one carbon atom in the nucleus which is saturated with hydrogen and not substituted. The water soluble derivative, pyroporphyrin sulfonic acid is prepared bysulfonation of the carbon atom with pyridinium-N-sulfonie acid according to the method of Treibs (Treibs, A. Annalen Der Chemie, 1933, 506, 196).

These compounds are readily identified in solution by their characteristic absorption spectra.

The phthalocyanines are prepared by the action of metals on the dehydration products of vol. 1, p. 99.

All the chlorophyll substances and chlorophyll derivatives are completely described by Hans Fischer in his recently published works on the subject-Fisher-Orth Die Chemie Des Pyrrols Band 1 Halfte, Fisher-Orth Die Chemie Des Pyrro Band 2 Halfte, edited by H. Fischer and A. Stern, Leipzig 1940, Akademische Verlagsgesellschaft, M. B. H.

In the accompanying drawing is vdisclosed a portion of a gas mask embodying the invention,

In the container I4 is arranged a iilllng of ad'- sorbent material consisting essentially of activated charcoal and soda lime approximately in the ratio of four to one. In the space between the inner wall of the container I4 and the tube I3-is provided a body of powdered chemical vconsisting of plant respirative pigment chlorophylls or its derivative or the compounds previously described.

Air enters the canister through the valve I2 and first passes through the ltering material I5, after which it enters the space within` the container I4. In this container it is subjected to the action of the adsorbent material contained therein in the same manner as heretofore. From the adsorption chamber, the air passes into the space between the inner wall of the container I 4 and Athe tube I3 where it comes in contact with .the

chlorophyll compound contained therein and if the air contains the gases such as ammonia, hydrochloric or hydrocyanic acid fumes or carbon monoxide, such gases are removed from the air by the chlorophyll compound after which the puriiied air passes out through the tube I I.

I claim: A

l. In a gas mask, means for chemically removing poisonous gas from a mixture of air and such gas passing through the mask, said means comprising plant-respiratory pigment.

2. In a gas mask, means for chemically removing poisonous gas from a mixture of air and such gas passing through the mask, said means comprising chlorophyll-type plant-respiratory pigment.

3. In a gas mask, means for chemically removing poisonous gas from a mixture of air and such gas passing through the mask,` said means comprising chlorophyll.

4. In a gas mask, means Vfor chemically removing poisonous gas from a mixtureof air and vsuch gas passing through the mask, said means comprising a chemical material selected from the group consisting of chlorophyll, chlorophyll compound and chlorophyll derivative.

5. In a gas mask, means for chemically removing poisonous gas from a mixture of air and such gas passing through the mask, said means comprising a chemical material selected from the group consisting o f chlorophyll, chlorophyllins, chlorophyllin salts, porphyrin and sulpho-derivatives thereof, metallic complexes of the fore- 

